The Greatest Challenge in Adapting to Another Culture
Based on the readings, what I believe to be my greatest challenge in adapting to another culture is a lack of cultural literacy, which affects the ability to comprehend interactions within cultural contexts. Cultural literacy is based on communication, which revolves around cultural competence (Sussman, 2002; Wang, 2011). Without it, language codes and contextual knowledge critical to social environment adaptation cannot be acquired. With this incapacity, I would struggle while also remaining deficient in decoding verbal and non-verbal messages, background information, and cultural symbols.
Specific Behaviors to Overcome the Challenge
Nonetheless, there are certain behaviors that I could adopt to alleviate this lack of cultural literacy challenge based on the readings. They include; effective communication, basic knowledge of communities, and cultural competence. Effective communication could be appropriate as it would help me improve my interactions which would boost my literacy in adapting to another culture (Wang, 2011). The second one, learning about communities, would also help me as cultural literacy essentially involves acquiring a basic understanding of interacting with other community members (Wang, 2011). The process can include learning about the community, human activity domains, and background information about the community to promote cultural literacy (Sussman, 2002). The final one, cultural competence, would also be essential as it involves translating fundamental knowledge into appropriate and socially acceptable behaviors. This includes adhering to the set rules and regulations the other cultural community agrees with and enhancing cultural literacy through verbal and non-verbal codes, thus boosting cultural literacy.
Greatest Benefit in Learning to Adapt to Another Culture
Adopting other cultures is very beneficial as it will enable me to integrate, embrace, and appreciate different cultures readily. I know how effective communication, cultural literacy, and cultural competence will help me overcome challenges in adopting new cultures. Additionally, I will be able to adhere to the set rules and regulations agreed upon by other cultural communities and integrate easily into different cultures. Moreover, I have understood the role of communication, concerning both verbal and non-verbal codes, and their impact in fostering integration with other cultures.
References
Sussman, N. M. (2002). Sojourners to another country: The psychological roller-coaster of cultural transitions. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 8(1).
Wang, J. (2011). Communication and Cultural Competence: The acquisition of Cultural Knowledge and behavior. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 7(1).